Latest in Random Musings
Ghost Bikes
I walked past them for years, back when I lived in DC — those all-white bicycles chained to signposts and light poles around the city, sometimes with flowers or a photo tucked into the spokes.
Is This Finally the End of Changing Our Clocks?
I hope they finally end this. I hate changing clocks twice a year — it should be a thing of the past. What do you think?
Sgt. Thayer Would Not Approve
Replying to It's Independence Day, Not 'the Fourth of July' I read an article about a former Army ROTC cadet whose sergeant used to quiz the squad on American history.
Yes, This
Jim Nielsen's post about blogging landed right after I wrote about dickovers, and it's basically why I bothered writing that post at all. — Jim Nielsen Yes.
Koi in Graffiti
They are so cool. Love these koi in Graffiti Alley.
No One's In The Front Seat Anymore
Twenty years ago I watched The Fifth Element, and there's a taxi scene I never forgot.
Maybe It's Just Me, But Blogging Shouldn't Have This
John Gruber over at Daring Fireball recently gave a name to something we've all been quietly furious about for years: the dickover.
Happy 20th Birthday, Blu-ray: Wait, It's Still a Thing?
Photo by Dadi Prayoga on Unsplash I'm way behind on email. Thousands of them. I just skim until something catches my eye — and most of it doesn't.
Indeed, it is true. The Boston Consulting Group Isn’t Wrong john. philpin.
Duck AI Fell for a Fake News Story
There is a website called WKNA 49 that looks exactly like a local West Virginia TV news station. It has a weather ticker, a logo, a newsroom email, even a corrections policy.
Happy Palindrome Day! 6-26-26
Today's Date 6-26-26 Palindrome Day ← same both ways → Read it backward. Same thing. I find this unreasonably satisfying.
Well, It's Official — Apple Prices Are Going Up
It’s kind of a bummer that price increases are coming for everything — desktops, laptops, tablets, phones. No one is getting out of this one.
The Android Feature That Leaves "Close All Tabs" Guides in the Dust
There are guides out there covering how to close all your tabs at once — like this one. Solid tips, all of them.
Espresso Without the Heat
I make a latte every single day. It's become a whole ritual — pull the shot, pour it over ice and almond milk, done. I even get my beans shipped monthly from Atlas Coffee Club.
Hamilton Saw This Coming
Hamilton clearly predicted Donald Trump in a 1792 letter to George Washington: “When a man unprincipled in private life, desperate in his fortune, bold in his temper, possessed of considerable talents … despotic in his ordinary demeanour — known to have scoffed in private at the principles of liberty — when such a man is seen to mount the hobby horse of popularity — to join in the cry of danger to liberty — to take every opportunity of embarrassing the General Government [and] bringing it under suspicion — to flatter and fall in with all the nonsense of the zealots of the day — it may justly be suspected that his object is to throw things into confusion that he may ‘ride the storm and direct the whirlwind.’
One King, One Table, Five Centuries
I used to be pretty good at pool. Through my 30s, I’d hit the bars around Dupont Circle with friends and we’d spend hours at the table just playing for fun. I loved it.
American Sign Language (ASL) is beautiful, and I have been watching this video over and over again; it features the song “Love Is an Open Door” from Frozen.
I would love to see a creaseless display on a foldable phone in the US. I know rumors say the Oppo Find N7 may have it.
As expected, WWDC focused heavily on AI, with no major iOS or iPadOS features beyond performance tuning. That is our vision for Apple Intelligence.
It’s incredible how far we can go to observe what they look like. The universe offers so much to explore. Additionally, it’s hard to believe we’re the only ones out there.
Yikes! The United States confirmed a case of New World screwworm in Texas, marking the first detection in the state in decades and raising concerns for the livestock industry reut.
Great, but how can it compete w/ Chrome? Chrome can do w/ setting and extensions.
I hope this isn’t true—it would be an eyesore! I believe it shouldn’t be on the White House lawn, but perhaps somewhere like the Mall. What is he thinking?!
Posted a titled blog post to Bluesky via Micro. blog’s Standard. site integration — looks sharp!
Learning to Say No (Mostly)
I love trying out new gadgets when they drop, but they tend to have a short shelf life — ending up tucked away somewhere, forgotten. Same goes for apps and websites.
It’s embarrassing that the US hasn’t kept pace with the shift to electric vehicles, which are the future and should be affordable.
TIL that DC is an acronym for “Detective Comics.” Now, the times I don’t need to say DC Comics because it’s already implied in DC, right? But why do we still say DC Comics?
Love this!
I love this creativity how is is painted on the wall. Maybe I could do something like that in my tiny house. Hmm.
If I am travelling again, I would love to see this place. It is so cool.
Love those windows!!!
Neat!!!
Love this photo! Love Pink Panther!!!
I wanna visit there one day! It looks like a cool place!
Another one!
I miss that place. I used to go there when I live in DC. It is beautiful.
It is amazing how they do it.
This is equal parts bizarre and horrifying. Centuries-old whaler remains thawing out of Arctic permafrost and sliding downhill. Climate change isn’t just a future problem.
The water is so clear you can see straight through the ice. Absolutely stunning — and absolutely terrifying. One crack away from disaster.
It’s hard to believe we’ve only cataloged around 15% of animal species — so much of life on Earth is still out there, undescribed and unseen.
If you want to learn American Sign Language (ASL), learn basics like ABCs and signs. Enjoy and happy learning.
Says what? A lab grown leather bag for $600,000 and claimed it is from T-Rex leather but actually from chicken. Will it fool people thinking it is T-Rex leather?!?!
Amazing. This piece is a digital artwork by Yehan Wang titled “Wired Metropolis.”
Haiti declared independence in 1804 — the first nation founded by people who freed themselves from slavery. The world’s response was not celebration.
Being stranded on a ship in the ocean like that, with all the uncertainty about what is happening, is frightening. I would be scared, too.
“For too long, multilateral climate forums have felt like rooms where everyone speaks, but no one understands. Santa Marta broke that pattern. It spoke the language of hope.”
An 8-year-old on vacation spotted a hooked Kemp’s ridley sea turtle — the world’s most endangered — off a North Carolina pier and called for help. That call saved it.
Good morning! Just wanted to say hi! By the way, I really love this movie, Hopper.
I am in awe as I watch this massive wave crash onto the land, and then a rainbow appears. It is simply beautiful to see.
TIL about that word: Ghorbat.
The Planet Is Still Worth Showing Up For
There's a patch of wild grass behind my tiny house I've never mowed. Something always shows up there — a beetle, a moth, a spider doing its thing.
The city secured $3.15M federal funding for its first All-Abilities Playground at Onion Creek Metro Park, creating an inclusive space for children of all abilities to play together.
Though I still have an iPhone 12 Pro Max and use it occasionally, I mainly rely on my Android phone daily.
I saw The Devil Wears Prada years ago, but with a sequel on the way, I was curious if it’s based on a true story.
For fun, I check my horoscope once in a while… I am a Virgo.
All I can say is that this bird is stunningly beautiful.
TIL the 1831 London Bridge was moved to Arizona! Built to replace the crumbling medieval bridge, it eventually started sinking itself and was sold in 1968.
I am in awe that people still race Penny Farthings. Every year—including this past February 2026. On purpose.
I was using my iPhone 12 Max and found copying and pasting difficult when I needed to use three or more items.
It’s disgusting that Trump is showing kids that video of himself after getting shot at a rally during the election season at Easter. What kind of man does that?
Ever wonder why every hotel drawer has a Bible? It started in 1899 when two traveling salesmen shared a room and realized weary travelers needed comfort.
Muse • Somerset, UK If I ever have a spacious home, this is the vibe I’m going for. A copper tub and wood-burning stove are pure magic!
Word of the Day: Heteroflexible
Word of the Day Heteroflexible /ˌhet-er-oh-flek-suh-buhl/ • adjective, sometimes noun 01. 02.
It is heartbreaking to see this happening. A 12-year-old should be hiding safely, not guarding a military checkpoint.
Studying for my driver’s permit. Hoping to take the test next week. I haven’t driven a car in 30 years.
Tomorrow is April 1. March was a blink. Where did it go?
Photo: KL Murphy for NPR There are only 51 Rice’s whales left on Earth. They live exclusively in the Gulf of Mexico — that’s their whole world.
Credit: Lucas Gouveia/How-To Geek Most streaming services default captions to the smallest size, don’t carry across devices, finding where to adjust them varies.
“Three central components of subjective well-being were considered: life satisfaction, positive emotional states, and negative emotional states.” - Dr.
Still rocking my 2017 Pixelbook, minimal lag. The 16GB model was the right call. This article nails it, sticking with Chromebooks over the MacBook Neo makes sense.
A leaked LEGO set of Gaudí’s Sagrada Família could dethrone every set before it. Curious to see how it comes together.
New research finds the U. S. has caused roughly $10 trillion in global climate damage through its emissions since 1990 — more than any other country.
Those sliding doors are everything. I’d love something like that in my own place — maybe it’s finally time to replace that old door I’ve been holding onto. Future project?
If I were short, I wouldn’t mind a Hobbit-style house, but at 6'0", I’m more like Gandalf. I’d spend most of my time tilting my head just to navigate the place.
I’m enjoying my Iced Mocha latte with Almond milk—it’s so delicious! But I might be due for a new espresso machine. I’ve had this one for about 5 years now.
I just had sausage gravy and biscuits for breakfast, but it wasn’t homemade like my family used to make on Sundays when I was growing up.
“Once men turned their thinking over to machines in the hope that this would set them free. But that only permitted other men with machines to enslave them."
Paris spent a decade ripping out car lanes and replacing them with 550km of bike paths, pedestrian squares, and actual trees — one of the most ambitious urban transformations on the planet.
Wait—The U.S. and Iran Were Once Allies?
My blog doesn’t usually wander into geopolitics, but a couple of emails about the U. S.
The fun has begun…opening to the first bag right now.
A Detour Through Butcher Hollow
Yesterday started with a routine trip to Paintsville, KY, for an eye doctor appointment. However, there is something we have to watch closely.
It’s incredibly heartbreaking to see this today.
I recently set up my MacBook Air. I had forgotten how lightweight it is—it feels fantastic.
Can’t wait for my 15" MacBook Air, expected by 5 pm. Rural delivery means it might slip to tomorrow, but I’m hopeful.
I wish they’d create a phone like the Nothing Fold concept. It’s wide and tall when closed, opening into a mini-tablet—the ideal hybrid.
A lone tree stands guard under Orion’s glow on the banks of the Ōreti River, NZ. This moonlit blend reveals the vibrant pinks of the Orion Nebula in stunning detail.
Okay, this one is a little alarming. “More than 300 Chrome extensions were found to be leaking browser data, spying on users, or stealing user information.
So apparently Americans just “discovered” lüften, — the German practice of airing out your home — and gave it the very dignified name of “house burping.”
Someone walked into a South Carolina library and filmed the empty YA shelves. Said they hadn’t realized how bad it had gotten. Honestly?
Okay, Mars just got more interesting. A new study flipped the script — ancient Mars wasn’t a frozen wasteland.
Have you heard of dark showering? Showering with the lights dimmed or off before bed. TikTok is obsessed, and the science is actually interesting.
An artist spent 3 years building a 3-foot haunted dollhouse set in 20th-century Mississippi. Rancid fridge, pet carcasses, crime scenes with her actual blood.
Robotic technology is coming, whether we want it or not. youtube.
Winter-bound? There are kits: Crochet, macrame, & decorating beautiful cakes. I always want to learn those new things.
This Pittsburgh contractor built her house with a 6,000-pound copper spiral slide — a safety exit — and an 800-pound glass floor craned through the window. How cool is that?
Starlink is up last night! Promised 400 Mbps, delivering 361. Cable always promised 500, gave me 250-350.
AI tools are everywhere now - every app racing to add generative features. But there’s a backlash brewing: AI fatigue.
Saw Mummy films & enjoyed all of them. Brendan and Rachel are coming back for another Mummy movie! May 2028.
I love Spiderman! There is another Spiderman coming! Nicolas Cage is playing Spider-Man Noir in a new series dropping May 27th on Prime Video, and it looks incredible.
Before Dracula, there was Carmilla—literature’s first major vampire, and she was a lesbian.
I came across this fascinating study abt how the Chincha Kingdom in Peru fertilized their way to success w/ seabird poop!
Here’s something wild: an old Texas coal mine is now a garden feeding 3,000 people a year. Pretty cool redemption story.
Just read this fascinating study where older adults (65+) did brain training for 10 weeks and reversed about a decade of brain aging.
This year: more bloom than doom. Bloomscrolling means intentionally curating uplifting content instead of doomscrolling.
Today I learned pine cones are little weather predictors! Fascinating, isn’t it?
Photo: Technogeek75 via Instagram Our happiness depends on the habit of mind we cultivate.”
5 yrs ago during COVID, my glasses broke & I cldn’t make an eye appt. Started using reader. My eyes have worsened, bumping up the diopter over time.
Tech gadgets are my kryptonite—saying no is NOT my superpower. 🤷♂️ Are you taking the no-spend challenge? I’ll try my best, but zero guarantees here.
Phubbing: The Word I Learned Just in Time for Valentine's Day
Just learned a new word tonight: phubbing. I’ll be honest, I’ve been guilty of this more times than I’d like to admit.
I’ve loved Winnie the Pooh since I was a baby. My Pooh doll was such a comfort to me and I still have it. Just heard Lego is making a Pooh set and I’m thrilled!
This doodle art is amazing … I wish I could learn how to do that. For sure, it will take a lot of practice. Check it out!
French Toast Isn't French (And Other Things I Learned Last Week)
You know how some people collect stamps or vintage records? I collect random things.
The hardest part is letting go of what used to work." - Apolo Ohno, Hard Pivot: Embrace Change. Find Purpose.
Found a good article that really resonated with me. Forget grand New Year’s resolutions—meaning comes from small, consistent actions.
24 monks walked 2,300 miles, 180 day, from Texas to DC for peace—dressed in saffron robes & often barefoot, they crossed ice & snow.
Drew Barrymore and I are the same age! She turns 51 on Feb 22; me in August. I always thought she was older.